Why your cybersecurity program needs the human touch

Cyberattacks are big news these days, and for good reason. When security is compromised, the ensuing complications lead to big problems. Just think of the many high-profile hacks and illegal data breaches that have filled news cycles over the last few years. When the personal data of hundreds of thousands of customers is leaked, the consequences and impending settlements can be catastrophic.

What’s puzzling is the fact that most companies, even those that have been victimized, already employ state-of-the-art security infrastructure, including SIEM technology. What gives? One of the reasons is the lack of human oversight, specifically Security Operations Centre (SOC) capabilities, in a radically evolving threat landscape.

Given the complexities of today’s networks, security threats have far outpaced traditional security infrastructure, including managed firewalls. Companies relying on SIEM alone, are missing out on the crucial aspects of threat protection only a SOC team can offer.

What does a SOC typically provide?

The long-list: an understanding of network topology, fine-tuning of policies and applications, research and deployment of emerging threat lists and a lot more. The short-list: expert oversight.

There’s no question, a SIEM can deliver advanced automated consolidation and correlation. It can also effectively sound the alarm on security events across networks, servers, endpoints and databases. What most organizations lack is the skill set needed to analyze and validate the vulnerabilities it detects. This is where the human insight provided by a SOC can pay big dividends. When your security team is engaged and up-to-speed with the latest threat intelligence, your internal detection and defence posture is greatly strengthened.

Now what? Infuse your SIEM with a dose of humanity

To truly close off all gaps in cyber security, it is important to understand that managing security isn’t a 9-5 job. There is no plug-and-play solution and a SIEM alone won’t cut it. The capacity of a SOC to analyze threat data and enforce rules is crucial. That’s why smart companies view SIEM as an opening play, with SOC as the closer. When it comes to security, the expert human touch can never be underestimated.